Trends in emergency department visits for acetaminophen-related poisonings: 2011-2019

Abstract

We examined trends in emergency department (ED) presentation rates for acetaminophen-related poisonings across Canada. A total of 27 123 cases of poisoning were seen in the electronic Canadian Hospitals Injury Reporting and Prevention Program (eCHIRPP) sentinel sites between April 2011 and February 2019; of these, 13.7% were related to acetaminophen use. A significant decreasing trend for both sexes was observed for unintentional poisonings (males: -10.3%; females: -8.0%). For intentional poisonings, there was a significant decrease among females only (-5.9%). Females have consistently displayed higher rates of ED presentations for both unintentional and intentional poisoning.